Factory Theatre/acts of faith, written by David Yee, directed by Nina Lee Aquino, livestream theatre, Nov. 19 to Nov. 28. Free. Tickets available here.
Theatres have had to be very creative during this time of plague. Factory Theatre’s approach has been to design an ambitious, free of charge, 2020-21 virtual season that features six world premieres and one re-imagined Canadian classic. In other words, artistic director Nina Lee Aquino has totally embraced the fact that audiences will not be coming to the theatre any time soon. As the Factory season announcement said: “Until we can connect again in the flesh, let us come to you.”
The season opening digital production is a commissioned work by award-winning playwright David Yee called acts of faith, which was penned specifically for über-talented actor Natasha Mumba. Each show is performed live, so although we are not there in the flesh, we are still getting the freshness of an actor’s performance happening in real time. Clearly this new format, which I call livestream theatre, will be the name of the tune for the foreseeable future. I could sense Mumba’s energy through the screen. It felt real and alive to me, sort of like harkening back to the exciting days of live television.
What Yee has done in the play is a bit of cultural appropriation. Yee is of mixed race Asian ancestry, but he is writing about Africa, specifically, Zambia. He was inspired by the fact that Mumba was born in Zambia, and the result is a wildly imaginative, even fantastical, foray into African culture, family and religion. In his writing, Yee certainly seems to have captured the spirit of Africa, and nothing in the play feels manifestly false or forced. On the other hand, what the politically correct zealots will think about someone writing about a culture not his own is another question altogether. I didn’t find it a problem, and it certainly had a ring of authenticity to me.
Yee’s premise is this. Mumba plays a Catholic schoolgirl who has acquired the reputation of a prophet who can perform miracles. Also part of the mix is a Catholic priest behaving badly. How and why these miracles come about is fascinating, and I don’t want to give anything away. Yee was raised a Catholic, so he certainly has strong credentials in this aspect of the play. Suffice it to say, that through imaginative writing, embedded in wit and humour, acts of faith is a delight. Yes, there may be too many flights of fancy for some tastes, but, overall, the play is time well spent.
For director Nina Lee Aquino, this meant crafting a play for the camera, which is the new element in livestreaming. Mumba performs on Joanna Yu’s realistic set, which is a bedroom, and Aquino has her moving easily and naturally between the pieces of furniture. The director has also been clever in dispensing closeups by having Mumba put her face right up to the camera for emphasis. A clever technique is having Mumba switch to an African accent when she is conveying dialogue, while using a Canadian accent for the narration. This clearly puts the words of the other characters like the girl’s mother, her friends, her relatives, and yes, the priest, into stark relief.
As Aquino pointed out in the Q&A that followed the performance, she is a theatre director who is in the process of learning a whole new skill set, and acts of faith and its choreographed camera work is an impressive debut. Kudos to Michelle Ramsay for her atmospheric lighting, particularly through the windows, and Miquelon Rodriguez for his sound design. Rodriquez also functions as broadcast technician, which is a whole new role in livestream theatre.
In a word, Mumba’s performance is absolutely captivating. The script fits her like hand to glove, and her characterization of the clever and observant teenager is perfection. She conveys Yee’s wry humour with dash and sparkle, while never forgetting the more serious themes that boil and bubble under the surface. Mumba is one of those expressive actors who invest themselves in a persona and make it their own, but she is also a deft hand in bringing other characters to life. She never flags in energy, and this is a live performance in every sense of the word. We may not actually be in the theatre, but a gifted actor can convey the excitement of a live performance through the screen.
As this time of plague continues, I can see that livestream performance will become more accomplished, polished and experimental as stage directors hone their camera skills. I know they will keep trying different things. In this review, I am giving my blessing to livestream theatre (as long as the curse of COVID lasts). While it may not be the true theatrical experience because we, the audience, are not in the theatre, nonetheless, livestreaming is the next best thing.
And a final note. There were 332 “watchers” for the performance, and considering that Factory’s mainspace seats 200, livestream theatre has the ability to attract mega audiences in the future, and not just from the home city.
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